HOFFMAN — On a chilly fall afteroon at Weekengo Farms Horse Arena, the parking lot is full of horse trailers. Inside the arena, a tractor travels in circles, smoothing the dirt and preparing for the next round of barrel racing.

It’s time for the National Barrel Horse Association’s district show, and more than 150 participants have gathered, hoping to advance to the next round of competition.

One of those is Kyle Self, 21, of Staley. Self, with his wife and twin 1-year-old sons, Cody and Cameron, waited patiently atop horse Ironman for his turn to be called.

Self has been barrel racing since he was a child. It’s a hobby he learned from his parents, and one he plans to pass along to his boys in a few years.

“I’vev been doing this since I was old enough to ride a horse,” Self said. “It’s a great family activity.”

A two-time district champion in the youth division, Self now competes in the adult division.

His mother, Gina Rollins of Ramseur, a former rodeo champion, said the key to successful barrel racing is using well-broken horses.

Barrel racing involves training horses to make sharp turns around a set of three barrels arranged in a triangle formation inside the arena. Precision is a must, because if any of the barrels are knocked over, the ride is no good.

Years of training barrel horses have shown Rollins that horses need to learn the fundamentals first.

“They have to get used to the pattern,” Rollins said. “After they learn that, then you can work on speed.”

Barrel racing is a sport that attracts all ages. One of the youngest participants at the recent event was Kara Caudill, 5, of Seagrove.

Kara has been riding horses and doing barrel racing for a little over a year, according to her mother, Lori.

Kara also participates in beauty pageants, but given her choice of the two, she’d much rather be on her horse.

“I like to go fast,” Kara said with a shy smile.

The barrel races at Weekengo Farms are the work of Lori Burque and her fiance, Bill Fogg.

The races have been staged there for about eight months, Fogg said. But both he and Burque have been involved in the horse industry for many years.

They both work other jobs for the moment, but Fogg said the goal is eventually to turn the farm into a full-time business.